Department of Health and Social Care

The regulation of anaesthesia associates (AAs) and physician associates (PAs)

Lord Markham: My Hon. Friend Minister of State (Minister for Health and Secondary Care) (Andrew Stephenson) has made the the following Written Statement:Today I am pleased to announce that we published the response to the Government’s consultation on the legislation that will empower the General Medical Council (GMC) to regulate anaesthesia associate and physician associate roles.This is an important step towards UK wide statutory regulation of anaesthesia associates and physician associates under the GMC. The Government intends to lay the necessary legislation in both Houses. The Scottish Parliament will do the same.Physician associates work under the supervision of doctors taking medical histories, carrying out physical examinations, performing some medical procedures and analysing test results. Anaesthesia associates review patients before surgery, initiate and manage medications, administer fluids and blood therapy during surgery, and ensure there is a plan for patients following their operation. Both roles can work autonomously, but always under the supervision of a fully trained and experienced doctor.Earlier this year NHS England published its Long Term Workforce Plan – the first of its kind in the history of the NHS – which included the ambition to grow medical associate roles as part of multidisciplinary teams. The plan commits to increasing the physician associate workforce to 10,000 by 2036 to 2037 and the anaesthesia associate workforce to 2,000 over the same period.Regulation will provide a standardised framework of governance and assurance for clinical practice and professional conduct, to enable these roles to make a greater contribution to patient care. The GMC will have responsibility for and oversight of both doctors and these medical associate roles, allowing it to take a holistic approach to education, training and standards.These two medical associate roles will be the first to be regulated under a reformed legislative framework. We will subsequently be using this framework to modernise all healthcare professional regulators’ governing legislation, following the Law Commission's report, Regulation of Health and Social Care Professionals. Subject to parliamentary scrutiny, this legislation will instruct the GMC to commence regulation in 12 months requiring them to consult on their own rules, policies and guidance which are needed to begin regulation of these associate roles.The response to the consultation has been published on GOV.UK and I have deposited a copy in the Libraries of both Houses.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Introduction of Forest Risk Commodities regulations

Lord Benyon: My Right Honourable friend the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Steve Barclay) has made the following Statement.Deforestation is now the second leading cause of climate change globally, after burning fossil fuels, and is responsible for around 11% of all greenhouse gas emissions. Forests host around 80% of the world’s wildlife on land and are home to many species found nowhere else. In the last 60 years, more than half of tropical forests worldwide have been destroyed, reducing biodiversity and endangering beloved and crucial species like orangutans and other great apes, tigers, leopards and jaguars.Commodities such as cattle and palm oil have been identified as some of the key drivers of deforestation. The UK believes that working in partnership with producer countries to strengthen forest governance is the best way to prevent illegally deforested commodities from the global commodity market.This is why, as world leaders gather at COP28 for the next round of climate negotiations, we are confirming how UK law will work to prevent the use of forest risk commodities derived from illegally deforested land in UK supply chains.The legislation will help to protect precious tropical forests at risk of illegal clearance. This will help us to support producer country efforts to enforce their laws and stop illegal clearance and protect vital forest habitat for endangered wildlife.New due diligence requirements In 2021 this Government introduced new legislation in the Environment Act to tackle illegal deforestation in UK supply chains. This is a flagship measure to deliver on the commitment made by the UK and over 140 other countries at COP26 in Glasgow to halt and reverse deforestation by 2030.Schedule 17 of the Environment Act introduced three core requirements on regulated businesses:It prohibits them from using illegally produced forest risk commodities, including both raw and derived productsIt requires that they establish a due diligence system for each regulated commodityAnd it requires that they report annually on their due diligence exercise. To ensure transparency, parts of their reports will be published.Secondary legislation is necessary to operationalise the requirements of Schedule 17. Therefore, we are developing regulations for key forest risk commodities to ensure that they were produced on land used in compliance with local land laws.Commodities in scopeInitial secondary legislation will focus on four commodities identified as key drivers of deforestation: cattle products (excluding dairy), cocoa, palm oil and soy. These four commodities are estimated to account for 64% of the UK’s tropical deforestation footprint, with as much as 93% of this deforestation likely to be in violation of local laws. Regulating these four commodities will tackle over half of the UK’s estimated deforestation footprint and enable us to quickly put this critical regulation into force, whilst not disrupting trade and supply chains.We will keep the regulations under review, taking an opportunity to make any necessary refinements if required. The use of illegally harvested timber in supply chains is regulated separately through the UK Timber RegulationsBusinesses in scope and exemptionsThese regulations are a significant step towards reducing the UK’s overseas deforestation footprint. We are setting a global annual turnover threshold at £50m to ensure that only larger businesses who can most effectively influence supply chains are in scope of the regulations. In addition, businesses that are using 500 tonnes or less of each commodity per annum can apply for an exemption from the obligations.We are setting a grace period to enable businesses to prepare following the regulation being made. The intention is that the obligations will apply from the beginning of a reporting year.EnforcementThe regulations will provide for a wide array of sanctions that can be used for a range of contraventions, from reporting failures to significant breaches of the prohibition against using forest risk commodities produced on land illegally occupied or used. Amongst these, we have set an unlimited monetary penalty to offer an effective deterrent to regulated businesses by enabling sufficiently high-value penalties to be applied for the most serious breaches, while offering a reasonable range that an enforcement body can use in practice.To ensure fair and proportionate enforcement action, appropriate guidelines for the issuing of sanctions will be published. Protecting biodiversity is a global priority and all nations have a part to play. This law shows the UK delivering on our commitments by ensuring that there is no place on our supermarket shelves for key commodities that have been grown on land that is illegally used or occupied, tackling climate change and helping to protect so many beloved endangered species.

Cabinet Office

Government signing the Hillsborough Charter

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: My Rt Hon Friend the Deputy Prime Minister, Oliver Dowden CBE MP, has today made the following statement:In April 2016, the then Home Secretary commissioned Bishop James Jones to produce a report on the experiences of the Hillsborough families, to ensure their perspective was not lost. The Bishop’s report was published in November 2017. The Bishop identified 25 points of learning in his report. A key recommendation among these was the creation of a Charter for Families Bereaved through Public Tragedy or, as it will be known, the Hillsborough Charter. The Charter, which the Government has signed, seeks to ensure that the lessons of the Hillsborough disaster and its aftermath are learned, to prevent those who are affected by public tragedy in the future from having the same experience.Much of the Charter is already embodied in the rules, obligations and codes that already apply to those in Government. In signing the Charter, the Government is reaffirming its commitment to a continuing culture of honesty and transparency in public service and the wider public sector, in line with the existing frameworks and the underpinning values of the Seven Principles of Public Life (the Nolan Principles), including in response to public inquiries.The below sets out how the six points of the Charter are reflected in existing rules, obligations and codes that apply to those who work in Government, and how the Government understands the effect of the Charter in relation to these obligations:1. In the event of a public tragedy, activate its emergency plan and deploy its resources to rescue victims, to support the bereaved and to protect the vulnerable.Emergency response is provided for at a front-line level by organisations such as local authorities and emergency services, supported by statutory duties under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004. It is the responsibility of the Local Resilience Forum to coordinate the response to a major emergency, which is in line with this commitment in the Charter.2. Place the public interest above our own reputation.The concept of placing the public interest ahead of reputation is rooted in the Seven Principles of Public Life and, in particular, the first principle of selflessness. All public servants should follow this principle which states they should act solely in terms of the public interest. The Civil Service Code, which is underpinned by primary legislation, includes four values - Honesty, Integrity, Impartiality, Objectivity. It makes clear that all civil servants are expected to carry out their roles with dedication and a commitment to the Civil Service and its core values, including integrity (putting the obligations of public service above your own personal interests). Special advisers are temporary civil servants, and follow the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers and the Civil Service Code (other than the provisions on impartiality and objectivity); they are also bound by the requirement in the Civil Service Code to act with integrity and honesty.3. Approach forms of public scrutiny – including public inquiries and inquests - with candour, in an open, honest and transparent way, making full disclosure of relevant documents, material and facts. Our objective is to assist the search for the truth. We accept that we should learn from the findings of external scrutiny and from past mistakes.The Seven Principles of Public Life embed a requirement for all public servants to behave with openness (acting and taking decisions in an open and transparent manner and only withholding information from the public for clear and lawful reasons) and with honesty (being truthful). It also requires public servants to be accountable by submitting themselves to the scrutiny necessary to ensure this. The Civil Service Code requires that civil servants deal with the public and their affairs fairly, efficiently, promptly, effectively and sensitively, and they comply with the law and uphold the administration of justice. Ministers are subject to an overarching duty to comply with the law and to protect the integrity of public life.The principles of the Charter reflect the existing approach under the Nolan Principles, Civil Service Code and Concept of Operations to deal with the public and in respective processes openly and honestly. These principles also reaffirm our commitment to comply with the duty of candour and our existing disclosure obligations in respect of all proceedings in which the Government participates.In some situations, it may be inappropriate for official information to be disclosed publicly (for example, legally privileged information), or it may not be in the public interest to do so because of the subject matter (such as issues of national security). The Law Officers’ Convention may also apply to such information. Public officials are also subject to other requirements around information sharing, such as the Official Secrets Act 1989, and exemptions within the Freedom of Information Act 2000. This means that full disclosure may not always be possible in relation to broader scrutiny or inquiries. In signing the Charter, the Government is not intending to widen the disclosure obligations which currently apply or to narrow the well-established exceptions to those obligations. Nevertheless, the Government is committed to ensuring transparency and openness in relation to public inquiries and inquests in the event of a public tragedy, and public officials are committed to this by the existing framework of obligations.Hon. Members will be aware of the judicial review brought by the Government in relation to the Covid inquiry. This was to establish clarity on an important point of law. We now have a clear ruling on the powers of public inquiry chairs on the submission of material.The Government does not understand the Charter to expand or alter such obligations whether in judicial review proceedings, inquiries or inquests (or any other proceedings), as defined in the Civil Procedural Rules, the Inquiries Act 2005 and settled case law. The Government will continue to comply with its existing duties in relation to candour and disclosure.Similarly, the Government does not understand the existing duties in respect of the provision of information directly to the public to be expanded or altered by the signing of the Charter. This is subject to extensive regulation in for example the provisions (including public interest considerations) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and the Environmental Information Regulations, as well as the Inquiries Act 2005.4. Avoid seeking to defend the indefensible or to dismiss or disparage those who may have suffered where we have fallen short.Under the Seven Principles of Public Life, all public servants are required to demonstrate leadership, which includes treating others with respect and challenging poor behaviour wherever it occurs. They are also required to act with selflessness, by acting solely in the public interest, and with honesty by being truthful. The Civil Service Code makes clear that all civil servants are expected to carry out their roles with dedication and a commitment to the Civil Service and its core values, including honesty (being truthful and open) and integrity (putting the obligations of public service above your own personal interests).Special advisers are also bound by these requirements, by the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers, which sets out that “the preparation or dissemination of inappropriate material or personal attacks has no part to play in the job of being a special adviser as it has no part to play in the conduct of public life”, and the Civil Service Code. Ministers are expected to maintain high standards of behaviour and to behave in a way that upholds the highest standards of propriety.In accepting this principle, the Government does note however the importance of individuals being able to explain the rationale for their actions in the face of public scrutiny, including in the context of public inquiries.5. Ensure all members of staff treat members of the public and each other with mutual respect and with courtesy. Where we fall short, we should apologise straightforwardly and genuinely.All seven Principles of Public Life broadly capture the need for public servants to treat the public and each other with respect and courtesy, and to be honest, transparent and genuine in assessing outcomes. The Civil Service Code requires that civil servants are professional in how they deal with the public and their affairs, and act fairly, efficiently, promptly, effectively and sensitively.   It also requires that they comply with the law and uphold the administration of justice, acting with integrity by putting the obligations of public service above their own personal interests. As already noted, Ministers are expected to maintain high standards of behaviour and have an overarching duty to comply with the law and to protect the integrity of public life.6. Recognise that we are accountable and open to challenge. We will ensure that processes are in place to allow the public to hold us to account for the work we do and for the way in which we do it. We do not knowingly mislead the public or the media.All public servants, in line with the Seven Principles of Public Life, are required to demonstrate openness by acting and taking decisions openly and transparently, and not withholding information from the public unless there are clear and lawful reasons for doing so. They are required to be accountable by submitting themselves to the necessary scrutiny to be held accountable by the public, and to demonstrate honesty - being truthful - which would include not knowingly misleading others.The Civil Service Code requires that civil servants and special advisers deal with the public and their work fairly, and they comply with the law and uphold the administration of justice. Ministers have a duty to account to Parliament and will be held to account for the policies, decisions and actions of their departments and agencies, and must give accurate and truthful information to Parliament. Ministers should be as open as possible with Parliament, refusing to provide information only when disclosure would not be in the public interest), as set out in the extant 1997 Resolution on Ministerial Accountability to Parliament.

Places for Growth Update

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: My Rt Hon Friend the Minister for the Cabinet Office and HM Paymaster General, John Glen MP, has today made the following statement:Today we have published the latest statistics relating to Places for Growth role relocations. This publication sets out a Places for Growth programme overview, relocation data collection and methodology and progress against programme targets 2020-2023. Relocations data is broken down by nation, region, location, grade and department; cumulatively providing a holistic overview of the progress made in relocating Government roles to date.Places for Growth is delivering on the Government’s commitment to relocate 22,000 roles from London and to have 50% UK-based Senior Civil Service roles based outside London by 2030. In addition to publishing the latest statistics, today I have announced I am bringing forward the delivery time frame to relocate 22,000 roles from 2030 to 2027. This recognises the huge progress that has been made to date on this initiative; since 2020 the Places for Growth programme has worked with Government departments to relocate more than 16,000 roles. This announcement will also launch the headquarter locations of DSIT in Greater Manchester, DESNZ in Aberdeen in addition to Salford and DBT in Darlington as well as establishing Wrexham as a key location benefiting from additional roles from MoJ and an increase in headcount from DWP.Through Government role relocations and the strengthening of Civil Service communities across the UK, Places for Growth supports a number of other key Government priorities including Modernisation and Reform, Levelling Up and Strengthening the Union.Places for Growth will establish a network of locations across the regions and nations of the UK, supporting a geographically diverse Civil Service that delivers excellent public services, contributes to local economic growth and is better connected to, and representative of, the communities we serve.I am depositing a copy of the Places for Growth role Relocations Data 2020 - 2023 in the libraries of the Houses of Parliament.Following this statistical release, Places for Growth will publish Government role relocation data on GOV.UK on a quarterly basis.

Department for Energy Security and Net Zero

Energy Infrastructure Planning Projects

Lord Callanan: My Right Honourable Friend, the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Claire Coutinho MP), made the following statement today.This Statement concerns an application for development consent made under the Planning Act 2008 by Sunnica Energy Farm for the construction and operation of a solar photovoltaic energy generation farm, situated across West Suffolk and East Cambridgeshire.Under section 107(1) of the Planning Act 2008, the Secretary of State must make a decision on an application within three months of the receipt of the Examining Authority’s report unless exercising the power under section 107(3) of the Act to set a new deadline. Where a new deadline is set, the Secretary of State must make a Statement to Parliament to announce it.The current statutory deadline for the decision on the Sunnica Energy Farm application is 7 December 2023.I have decided to set a new deadline of no later than 7 March 2024 for deciding this application.The decision to set the new deadline for this application is without prejudice to the decision on whether to grant or refuse development consent.

Home Office

Publishing the Government’s Official Response to the Fire Reform White Paper and Consultation

Lord Sharpe of Epsom: My rt hon Friend the Minister of State for Crime, Policing and Fire (Chris Philp) has today made the following Written Ministerial Statement:I am pleased to announce to the House that the Government is today publishing our official response to the fire reform White Paper and consultation. Last year we published our White Paper, “Reforming Our Fire and Rescue Service” (CP 670), to gauge the public and sector’s views on how we wished to drive reform within fire and rescue services. Our proposals were built on the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the recommendations from HMICFRS’ independent inspections, challenging national report findings and the Grenfell Tower Inquiry. In the period since the White Paper was published, further challenges in the fire sector have been the focus of public and parliamentary debate. I refer, in particular, to the independent review of culture in the London Fire Brigade and the HMICFRS national spotlight report into values and culture. These reports highlighted misconduct in multiple fire and rescue services and uncovered totally unacceptable behaviours. Our White Paper response sets out our ambition to improve integrity across the sector. The feedback on our proposals has allowed us to refine our next steps and announce today our package of reform, which will focus on the areas that have the biggest impact for the public and for fire professionals: developing a profession to be proud of and ensuring that fire services do more to put the public first. These include: Introducing a professional College of Fire & Rescue to raise standards and strengthen leadership.Developing provision for fire chiefs to have operational independence.Tasking the National Joint Council to review the pay negotiation mechanism.Taking action to improve integrity and culture in fire and rescue services through improved training, more open recruitment practices and working towards a statutory code of ethics for fire and rescue employees. Our fire and rescue professionals deserve our support as they not only respond to a changing world but also seek to develop and strengthen their own capabilities. This consultation response sets out how we can work together with partners across the fire sector to deliver this. I would like to put on record my thanks to everyone who has engaged with us on our White Paper and consultation. Whether you have helped us shape our proposals or provided feedback on how they can work, your help has ensured we can drive forward much needed and long overdue reform for our fire and rescue services and ensure the best possible service for the public. The Government’s response has been laid before Parliament as a Command Paper (CP 993) and will be available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/reforming-our-fire-and-rescue-service